“We should have a half a day until that Coordinator guy arrives, right?”, asks Blossom.
Just three hours ago Elena and Phantom passed the barrier that conceals Munich from the world. Meanwhile, Raven, Blossom, and Sylvia are awaiting the arrival of their foe, "The Coordinator". About once every year occurs the birth of someone capable of attracting demons and controlling them like pawns. However, on average, only ten percent will reach their true potential and cause mayhem with their powers. Half of them die in early childhood unaware that they ever had these powers. Many more are killed by Dream Catchers shortly before these powers can be fully realized. The rest are under strict supervision.
There are several reasons as to why they are and should be feared. Superstitions and apocalypticism surrounding these individuals are as old as the first few words ever spoken. Tribes, nations, and supposedly entire worlds have been wiped out by this group of evil. December 21st, 2012 Calamity discovered a Devil created through the influence of a Coordinator. Toba, a Devil who has remained dormant since its birth, nearly wiped out humanity about 74,000 years ago.
“Say, do you really believe all this stuff about Toba? It’s more like a legend, right?”, asks Blossom. She may pick fights with Elena over petty trifles and past happenings, but she’s still smart enough to possess some skepticism over such legends and mysticism.
“It’s not my job to care. I’m only supposed to take down this Coordinator guy, right?”, she responds.
“However, some would say that Toba may not be entirely unfounded. Though superstitions and mysticism have plagued humanity since the dawn of mankind, dismissing these cautionary tales as "legends" is irresponsible and incredibly naive. Floods that supposedly brought about the end of times are rather prevalent in religion, right? Tribal cultures first settled around river deltas and lowland plains which are prone to flooding. A flood may seem like nothing to modern humanity but it was the end of the world to these communities. I believe Coordinators are just like that.”
“So… we’re supposed to catch him dead or alive, right? You know how old he is but you’re still ready to sacrifice him?”, Blossom asks mockingly.
“That’s rich coming from you,” roars Syliva. “I’m doing whatever I can to save as many people as possible! You have no right to criticize me for making the right choice instead of whining like a coward.”
“Hey, Sylvia. You’re the neutral one. You’re supposed to remain level-headed, right?”, jested Raven.
Sylvia regains her composure and apologizes for her sudden outburst. She dislikes having her neutrality questioned and though she would like to voice her own opinions, she’s unable to as long as she has her kids needing her protection.
“He is just a child but he’s also a threat. Though I’d like to believe that none of these fairy tales could ever be real, we’ve all seen so much that these things are hard to disprove.”
Blossom though annoyed, feels guilty over causing this much tension. Her biggest flaws are her ability to pick fights over pretty much anything and her inability to apologize after hurting someone’s feelings. She’s lost allies over her lack of tact and is increasingly irritating to converse with these past two years.
“So… How are your kids? I’ve heard that Forseti is getting over his shyness, right? I haven’t heard too much about Bailey and the others though. So how are the rest of them?”, she inquires.
“He’s making progress but Bailey is still the one pushing him to speak up and act. Other than that, just a week ago, a new kid joined us. Shy and sweet like Forseti but weaker than I expected,” Sylvia replies trying to hide a smile.
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“He’s also lost his memories and wants to meet some guy called King. I promised to reunite them and as soon as Ellie is done with her part, I’ll ask her to invite him over.”
“Elena, huh? We don’t know how much time they’ll spend in Munich. I’m also not too sure if she’ll make several trips in and out of the city or if she’ll make it in general,” adds Raven.
“Come on! I thought you had more faith in her. At least you should since you sent her on that mission with Phantom!”, Blossom hissed. For some reason, she’s standing up for Elena despite the fact that any other time she’d be ready to bash her over anything.
“It’s not that I don’t have faith in her. The issue is that such a massive threat is being handled by such insignificant people. Why are we, the five of us, dealing with this problem alone?”, Raven murmurs. “Over a million people have vanished overnight. We had hellish fires, great floods, and massive storms that brought ruin to several cities but none of these instantly killed a million people.”
“Are you certain that these kinds of beliefs are acceptable in a position as prestigious as yours? I could record and report you. Before long I hold control over the Bavarian Council as I take your seat,” Sylvia scoffs.
“Yeah, yeah… Don’t worry. I won’t say anything out of turn while anyone else is around.”
Their little moment of discourse is coming to an end. There’s not much time till the arrival of The Coordinator. As such they have to take their positions and wait for his descent. Since this is a covert operation only a few dozen people are aware of, they’ll have to skillfully restrain or assassinate The Coordinator before he can fight back. The battle area consists of just four layers spanning just over 100km².
Eight Dream Catchers with heightened detection abilities are positioned in the middle of Layer 3 with one protector shielding them from harm. Anything out of place or out of the ordinary will be reported to the 20 Dream Catchers scattered throughout Layer 4. They were purposefully placed in Layer 3 so that you’d have to sneak past Layer 4 but also so that the detection ranges of the 8 overlap with each other.
The 20 Layer 4 Dream Catchers are responsible for stopping anyone from entering or leaving. Only The Coordinator is allowed in and any stranger, even an innocent civilian will be struck down on sight. They’re also bait as their deaths can be detected and act as sirens to the detectors.
Layer 2 houses 4 Dream Catchers that will erect a barrier the moment The Coordinator passes them. Though only one is necessary, four can create a stronger barrier with fewer weak points. The barrier will continue to exist until all of them fall.
Finally, Layer 1 will house Raven, Blossom, and Sylvia. Raven will engage any threat that emerges from the skies, Blossom will drag out anything buried underground, and Sylvia assaults whatever is lurking above ground. If The Coordinator appears, all three of them will fight as a team until he surrenders or dies.
“I know I’m supposed to hand him over to the Overseer but several groups would pay enough for me to retire, wouldn’t they?”, ponders Raven. All they have to do is defeat their target and deliver him to the Overseer of German Dream Catchers but Raven wonders whether or not it truly is worth it. His eye is on the prize. He already has enough prestige within Germany and its neighboring thanks to his group of mercenaries, The 11 Plagues. His rule over them has gotten him this far and they’ll go so much further if this mission ends in success.
“Maybe I could use him as another Receptor Child? Or I could sell him off to the Magi? Those religious zealots would pay anything for his corpse. Same thing with Calamity since she only cares about researching oddities…”
Flying around, he notices a quick flash right above him.
Meanwhile, Sylvia and Blossom are right next to each other waiting for The Coordinator’s first strike. As both guard and fighter, Sylvia, in iron-clad armor, waits for any kind of signal. Blossom spreading her roots far and wide cannot detect anything out of the ordinary. 35 people are just about ready to deal with any attack thrown at them.
Suddenly, an object drops from the heavens landing right in front of Daisy and Sylvia as if to personally challenge them. The one standing before them is The Coordinator himself making his presence known. A young boy barely old enough to qualify for double-digits with a strange visor covering his eyes… Emotionless and almost glowing he showcases his scythe waiting for their first strike.
“Fighting is wrong. We can solve this peacefully,” he says as he sticks his mechanical scythe into the ground. He sits down ready to have a conversation.